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Vietnam-era veterans faced hard times

Posted:
07/19/2012 04:21:59 PM MDT

Jeff Swanty

I hadn't realized until recently that some people were questioning how servicemen were treated during the Vietnam era. I searched online for "spitting on Vietnam veterans" and was surprised to find even a book has been written questioning if anyone had ever spat on a Vietnam vet.

I'm not a Vietnam veteran but did attend college and serve in the US Navy during this era. I can say veterans were not recognized and honored the way they are today.

There were many supporters of servicemen, but there were those who felt we were less than honorable for serving in the military.

Prior to enlisting in the Navy, I attended the University of Arizona in Tucson during 1969, when it was mandatory for freshmen and sophomores to participate in ROTC. Some students took great joy in teasing and mocking ROTC enrollees.

We stood out from other students not only when in uniform but at all times because we were required to wear a military haircut which was not fashionable at the time.

It was not uncommon to suffer ridicule from antiwar protesters. Most of them never stopped to ask what our feelings on the war might have been.

Right after starting college and ROTC, new freshmen and I were required to show up in uniform on campus for some type of inspection. As we were standing at attention in formation, an antiwar protester walked up to me and spat at my shoes. I ignored his action as we were expected to stay in rank and not respond in any way.

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This was not an isolated event as campus demonstrations were commonplace.

Much of the hate and disdain for the military wasn't with public demonstration. It was shown by the way people interacted with servicemen and veterans. Oftentimes people had no idea they were making derogatory and offensive statements.

The good news was there were supporters, if not of the war, certainly of the servicemen who served sometimes by choice and others not by choice.

While home on leave after returning from duty overseas, my dad took me to a Rotary meeting, where the members thanked me for my service and sang the Star-Spangled Banner, which brought tears to my eyes. I had forgotten about the silent majority of Americans who understood what was happening and supported servicemen regardless of the unpopularity of the war.

I returned from leave to a new two-year military assignment in Washington, D.C., from 1971 to 1973. This was during the Nixon and Watergate years, and the nation's capital was nothing less than exciting.

Demonstrations were ongoing, and the disdain for those serving in uniform was obvious. More than once I heard "two, three, four, we don't want your (expletive) war."

Most veterans didn't ask for or expect special treatment upon discharge. We were happy to be out of the military and eager to find a job in an over-saturated job market.

Stories were told where servicemen felt they weren't hired because they were a vet. Apparently, there were concerns about hiring servicemen who might have used drugs and have mental scars from their time in Vietnam. I was fortunate and did not experience this. Twice I received veteran's preference and was hired as a result of my military background.

As was often said during the Vietnam war years, "times were turbulent." America was fighting a very unpopular war and old men were sending young men to fight their battles.

There were both supporters and protesters, almost nobody was ambivalent as people had strong feelings one way or the other.

It's unfair to history to suggest Vietnam era servicemen received the well-deserved respect today's servicemen receive.